On January 2, 2013, Green Lake County filed a petition with the Wisconsin
Employment Relations
Commission asking the Commission to exclude certain employees from an existing
bargaining unit of public
safety employees employed by the County and represented for the purposes of collective
bargaining by
the Green Lake County Deputy Sheriff's Association/Wisconsin Professional Police
Association/LEER
Division. The parties thereafter filed written argument-the last of which was received July 9,
2013.

Having considered the matter and being fully advised in the premises, the
Commission makes and
issues the following

No. 34208

Page 2

Dec. No. 34208

ORDER

The employees Green Lake County has classified as "general" employees are hereby
removed from
the existing public safety employee bargaining unit represented by the Green Lake County
Deputy Sheriff's
Association/Wisconsin Professional Police Association/LEER Division.

Given under our hands and seal at the City of Madison, Wisconsin, this 7th day of
August, 2013.

WISCONSIN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION

James R.
Scott, Chairman

Rodney G.
Pasch, Commissioner

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Dec. No. 34208

GREEN LAKE COUNTY

MEMORANDUM ACCOMPANYING ORDER
CLARIFYING BARGAINING UNIT

Section 111.70(4)(d)2.a., Stats. provides in pertinent part:

The commission may not decide that any group of municipal employees
constitutes
an appropriate collective bargaining unit if the group includes both public safety employees
and general municipal employees . . . .

. . . a municipal employee who is not a public safety employee or a transit
employee.

Pursuant to Sec. 40.06(1)(d), Stats., on or about December 28, 2012, Green Lake
County
reported to the Wisconsin Department of Employee Trust Funds (DETF) that certain
employees in an
existing "public safety employee" bargaining unit were not "protective occupation
participants" within the
meaning of Sec. 40.02(48)(am) 9.,10., 13., 15., or 22, Stats. The employee status reported
by the County
remains in effect unless reversed pursuant to an appeal filed with the Department of
Employee Trust Funds
Board (DETFB)

Because "public safety employee" status is dependent on an employee's classification
as a
"protective occupation participant", if an employee is not classified as a "protective
occupation participant"
the employee is not a "public safety employee" but is instead a "general municipal
employee." By virtue
of the County's report to ETF, the employees in dispute are now "general municipal
employees". Because
Sec. 111.70(4)(d) 2.a., Stats. prohibits the inclusion of "general municipal employees" in the
same
bargaining unit as "public safety employees", we are obligated to exclude them from the
existing "public
safety

employee" bargaining.(1) Because the
parties do not agree on whether the now excluded employees should
become a new free-standing "general employee" bargaining unit or become

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Dec. No. 34208

part of an existing "general employee" bargaining unit, that issue remains to be
resolve through additional
litigation if necessary. Pending resolution of that issue, the employees continue to be
represented by the
Association/WPPA/LEER.

Dated at Madison, Wisconsin, this 7th day of August, 2013.

WISCONSIN EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS COMMISSION

James R. Scott, Chairman

Rodney G.
Pasch, Commissioner

1County of LaCrosse v
WERC, 170 Wis. 2d. 155, 488 N.W. 2d 94 (Ct.App. 1992) and LaCrosse
County, Dec. No. 28773 (WERC, 6/96) make it clear that whether employees meet
the determinative
"active law enforcement" definition found in Sec. 40.02(48)(a), Stats. is a decision reserved
to the County
initially and on appeal to DETF and DETFB. However, should the status of any of the
employees be
reversed on appeal, the employees will be automatically return to the existing public safety
employee
bargaining unit and any other labor relations ramifications of the reversal will be resolve
by the
Commission.